Istanbul by Night: Dining Out in a Turkish Way

Istanbul, Turkey

4 hours (approx.)
Pickup offered
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

Explore our promoted experiences

Istanbul Street Food Tour: 10 Tastings + Ferry to Kadikoy

Istanbul, Turkey

4.5

(2)

Istanbul Street Food Tour: 10 Tastings + Ferry to Kadikoy

from $136

Special Offer

Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul Food Tour 30 Tasting Stops with Audio Maps Written Guide

10 Tastings of Istanbul Foodie Tour

from $95

Price varies by group size

Viator earns higher commissions on experiences featured here

Overview

Awaken your culinary senses with this small-group Turkish food night tour in Istanbul. This tour explores Istanbul’s off the beaten path eateries, letting you discover the best of Turkey’s traditional tastes. Visit a barbecue restaurant and roast kebabs over an open flame, savor classics from a ‘simit’ bakery and enjoy live music and delicious meze at a ‘meyhane’ (Turkish tapas bar). This small-group food tour is limited to 15 people, for more personalized attention from your guide.

Step off the main tourist trail and eat like a local
Enjoy a simit bagel in a locally renowned bakery and visit a kiraathane (meeting room)
Grill your own kebabs on an open fire in a barbeque restaurant
Party the night away in a Turkish tapas bar with live music

What's Included

Food tasting
Beverages (two glasses of raki, Turkish coffee and tea)
Dinner (kebab, meze, soup)
Hotel pickup and drop-off from centrally located Istanbul hotels
Local guide
Live music

Meeting and Pickup

You can head directly to the meeting point, or request pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Meeting point

Beyoğlu/İstanbul, Türkiye

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Operating hours
.7:00 pm

Itinerary

Meet your Turkish food tour guide for a pickup at your hotel in central Istanbul and begin with drive to a bakery for a classic simit bagel. Munch on this molasses and sesame covered baked treat as you continue to a traditional kiraathane. Here, sit down for a relaxing cup of Turkish tea and watch locals deal game after game of cards. Chit chat with your guide about Istanbul until your last sip and then climb back into your minibus.

Turkish cuisine is renown for its synergy of Mediterranean and Eastern foods. With an abundance of spices, herbs, and simple yet fresh ingredients it’s no wonder Turkish fare tantalizes taste buds. Moreover, no place does it better than the the culinary capital, Istanbul. Since Istanbul has restaurants, street vendors, and meyhanes along every street the city can be difficult and often frustrating to navigate for the best grub. Lucky for you, your local guide can help uncover the hidden gems and help you discover Istanbul’s traditional delights.

Next, cruise to neighborhood hot spot called Ocakbaşi, where you can barbecue your own kebabs on a fired grill. Savor this delicious spiced meat as your guide explains the heritage of Turkish cuisine. Then, taste the traditional aniseed-flavored liquor, raki, a perfect aperitif. After getting a nice buzz, walk down a bustling street lined with restaurants and step into a festive meyhane to enjoy the rest of your night.

Listen to the hip live music and witness the bar’s ambiance trend from chill to high energy. As you get into the vibe, start with some tasty Turkish meze and then warm your belly with a bowl of Işkembe Çorbasi, Turkish soup. Prepare yourself for a fun evening with a cup of Turkish coffee since meyhanes can transform into parties. Finally, sip on another raki and soak up the good times before a late return to your hotel.

Istiklal Caddesi (Pass By)

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Minimum age for drinking alcoholic drinks is 18 years
Please note that if your hotel is located on the Asian side hotel pick up can’t be provided
Stroller accessible
Near public transportation

Infants must sit on laps
Infant seats available
Not recommended for pregnant travelers
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 6 travelers

Supplied by

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)

Reviews

4.1

based on 82 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

especial

Gabriela_B, Dec 2020

A very good experience, our guide was excellent. The places were we visit was very familiar and the food spectacular.

Response from Host, Dec 2020

Dear Gabriel, Thanks for your good review. We hope to see you again. Sincerely, Ali

Totally Awesome

Sean_M, Sep 2020

A must do for any first time visitors. We got to try a variety of various food and drinks. Our guide Furlan gave a lot of isight into the history of these dishes and drinks. Very grateful for the experience. Thank you.

Response from Host, Oct 2020

Dear Sean, Thank you very much for this beautiful review, and your compliment for Furkan. We will be glad to keep in touch with you if you come to Istanbul again. Best wishes

Fantastic introduction to Turkish culture and history

Rachita_A, Feb 2020

This was an awesome introduction to Istiklal street and the general Taksim area. There was plenty of food and fun cultural tidbits sprinkled in. The tour guide was a local resident and very knowledge about the area and the history. You truly got to have an authentic and local experience of Istanbul.

Response from Host, Mar 2020

We are happy to get your positive comments and that you enjoyed the tour. Hope to see you again in our tours when you next time come to Turkey. Regards, Damla Baştürk

Enjoyable experience

kingsongeo, Feb 2020

Very enjoyable experience. Lutfallah, the guide, was excellent. Learned a lot about the culture. Highly recommend.

Response from Host, Feb 2020

We glad to see you happy during your tour. Thank you for your good comments, also we hope to see you again in İstanbul. Kind Regards

A great introduction to beautiful Istanbul

717annie, Oct 2019

A thoroughly enjoyable experience with a very knowledgeable guide. Lots to eat and drink. Enjoyed learning a little of the social history of this amazing city.

Great tour

Derek W, Oct 2019

I highly recommend this tour, the guide was incredibly knowledgeable and we ate incredible food the entire time. We were stuffed by the end of the tour. This is one of the best ways to see Istanbul.

A true taste of Istanbul!

Timur_B, Sep 2019

Ilker was our tour guide on this foodie tour. We originally were supposed to have 11 people in our group, but this went down to only 3 people as others could not make the tour for extraneous reasons. While 3 people might not seem like much, it make the food tasting experience much more intimate and personal. We had great lamb kebab with lavash. Ilker did a great job showing us how to drink Raki, and included some customs on how to drink in a group of people. We also went to a Turkish delight vendor, and then to a more musical restaurant. We had musicians join our table after we had some great red and white wines. The music and food here was really nice. We visited a baklava vendor as well, which felt very personal as we were the only people inside the small dessert vendor shop. The baklava was great quality, and we also purchased more to take home. Lastly, we visited a coffee/tea place were some people were playing backgammon. The night wounded down and our bellies were full of delicious food. Ilker did an amazing job explaining everything, including some history of such foods as well as complementing flavours. Bravo!

Waste of time and money!

Kirsty_H, Jun 2019

Only one on tour, food was terrible, the tour guide was awkward & 35 minutes late. Big disappointment

Amazing experience

Explorer60230588286, May 2019

The people I met were awesome it was like we had known each other for ages. The tour guide was the best, he was very knowledgeable about history and culture and took us to the best places for food. All the food we ate was really good, we really experienced real Turkish culture through food and it was great having it at night. Istanbul never sleeps!

Worst company

Hadiya_A, May 2019

We made it clear we needed a pick up from the airport. We were stranded and never picked up. Will be requesting a refund when i get home. Dont trust them, they send emails, ignore your responses and the take your money.

This was a great introduction to...

Ann R, Jun 2018

This was a great introduction to Turkish cuisine and culture. My wife and I were the only ones signed up for the tour and our guide, John, did a great job of acquainting us with the Taksim Square and Istakal Street areas of Istanbul. The food and drink was wonderful starting with an introduction to Raki. We had a wide variety of dishes in 6 different locations. The owners of the cafes were very friendly and willing to share ideas on what we should order. John was quite willing to answer our questions about Turkish life and culture. This was our first full night in Turkey and it really helped prepare us for the two weeks that were to follow.

A great and fun way to experience...

River_C, Apr 2018

A great and fun way to experience the food magic and nightlife in Taksim. Our guide, Ilker Akin is amazing! And I had the best hummus Ive had in recent memory. Highly recommended.

AMAZING TRIP! Waring - do NOT eat...

Stefanie R, Apr 2018

AMAZING TRIP! Waring - do NOT eat the day of as you will get sooo much food on this tour. It was INCREDIBLE and we will definitely do similar trips in the future. We went to places we would NEVER have known about without a local guide. I highly recommend the tripe soup as well: Ha ha ha. The kids thought this was the best tour they had ever done!!!

I was fortunate to be the only...

Keith_J, Apr 2018

I was fortunate to be the only person on the tour and it was not cancelled. The tour guide was outstanding!

Great walking tour and so much fun...

DonnaMarie_Z, Mar 2018

Great walking tour and so much fun walking around Taksim square and made every stop to try some local food where people usually go . Tour guide made sure we are okay and still enjoying the food tour. I would highly recommend this tour and make sure you go with an empty stomach before the tour starts.

The reviews were all so excellent...

Sanjika D, Mar 2018

The reviews were all so excellent, we were expecting a great tour! The guide was a very unenthused and insisted on cancelling places described on the itinerary. THE TOUR LASTED 2 HOURS ON FOOT. THE GUIDE HIMSELF GOT TIPSY. LEFT THE TOUR HUNGRY. NO LIVE MUSIC. -We did not go to the bakery at all. There was no minivan, we were on foot. Covered a 2 KM radius at best. -When we went to the kebab place, we did not get to grill the kebabs on our own as promised! instead, we were normally given ONE very average tasting kebab each. -We did not go to the soup place either, and requested the guide to take us to a dessert place instead. He did not know of any dessert places in the neighbourhood! He finally after several requests called his friends to see if there was a place nearby. -We went to the mezze place and were given 4 plates- one with a plain cut melon, one with 3 pieces of tomatoes and cucumber, one hummus, and one rice roll. No local delicacy at all. - There was no live music or dancing. - We went to a dessert place close by, again very average. We had tried better food on our own before! - We came home by 10 pm!! the tour lasted 2 HOURS. The guide himself got drunk!! He told us stories about how he is angry with politics in Turkey, instead of any history about the town. ABSOLUTELY WOULD NOT SUGGEST. I have taken food tours world over Venice, Florence, London, NYC this was my life's worst experience with a food walk.

GREAT Guide! Love visiting different...

Kris, Jan 2018

GREAT Guide! Love visiting different restaurants and learning about the history of food and drink in the region. Small group was perfect for a lovely December evening in Istanbul.

Obviously, go hungry. This is an...

Megan M, Sep 2017

Obviously, go hungry. This is an amazing tour and you will really get to places you would not go on your own, and have some delicious food. Serhat the tour guide was fantastic. Highly recommend.

We took many tours in Istanbul and...

FARRUKH I, May 2017

We took many tours in Istanbul and this one was our favorite and most memorable one. All other tours were great in showing us all the touristy places in Istanbul, but this one showed us the places where locals go to eat and hang out. Our local guide was awesome and became a good friend of ours.

Great tour. Guide was so lovely made...

Michelle H, Apr 2017

Great tour. Guide was so lovely made the whole experience fantastic

Great way to walk around Istanbul in...

Derek_E, Feb 2017

Great way to walk around Istanbul in the evening and try a few hidden gems.

Highly recommended! My tour guide...

Edgar_L, Oct 2016

Highly recommended! My tour guide Hamide was very friendly and so accommodating. She's also very knowledgeable about Istabul culture and food. She brought me to many off-the-beaten path places and eateries, frequented mostly by locals. I really enjoyed this tour and am glad I booked this.

The tour was fun and delicious, but...

Sara S, Jun 2016

The tour was fun and delicious, but as part of the description it promised live music and to last until around 11 pm. There was no live music and I was back at my hotel room by just after 10 pm. I feel like the tour was cut short after one of the other people on the tour gave some constructive feedback regarding the tour that the tour guide didn't like.

Potentially our favorite thing we...

Joel R, Jun 2016

Potentially our favorite thing we did in Istanbul! We felt like locals and went to some great places that only locals would know about. Great experience and our tour guide was extremely knowledgable and very pleasant! Would most definitely tell anyone to do this!

A great way to become comfortable with...

Jeanette D, May 2016

A great way to become comfortable with Istanbul right away!

This tour was great. The guide was...

Amanda W, May 2016

This tour was great. The guide was really pleasant and knew his stuff. Got to try many different food establishments. Great night out. Would highly recommend.

Interesting tour even if we didn't...

JaneS_T, Apr 2016

Interesting tour even if we didn't get offered all the promised food. Guide was amusing but consentration was needed to understand his English. The tour finished over an hour earlier than advertised and the food at the second restaurant was disappointly bland.

Guide was articulate in English and...

Paul K, Mar 2016

Guide was articulate in English and while the food portion of the tour was enjoyable, his observations on the cultural and political were more interesting.

A great way to see Istanbul off the...

Ihab, Mar 2016

A great way to see Istanbul off the beaten path. our guide was so enthusiastic, he made the tour so much fun

Really amazing night and very glad...

Suzanne, Feb 2016

Really amazing night and very glad we did this tour! Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and spoke prefect English and it was great that we ended up with a private tour! Would recommend this tour to anyone who wants a taste of the real Turkey.